Convert TIFF to PDF

How it works

Tap or click the box and pick your TIFF file; only .tif and .tiff files are accepted, and you can select several at once. Each file is converted on its own: a 12-page fax saved as one .tif becomes one 12-page PDF with the same file name and the pages in the same order. Leave the page size on "Actual scan size" unless you have a reason not to. The tool reads the DPI the scanner stored in the file and sizes each page from it, so a 300 DPI scan of 2550 × 3300 pixels comes out as a true Letter page (8.5 × 11 in) and a 2480 × 3508 pixel scan as a true A4 page. Fax files store different horizontal and vertical resolutions, typically 204 × 196 DPI; both values are read separately, so the page is not squashed. If the file carries no DPI, or a value outside 50–2400 DPI, the page is fitted to Letter and the result line says so; pick "Fit to A4" for a document from Europe. Pages that contain only black and white are embedded lossless at 1 bit per pixel, grayscale pages lossless at 8 bits, and color pages as JPEG. The result line reports how many pages were handled in each mode and where the page size came from.

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What is TIFF?

TIFF (Tagged Image File Format) was written in 1986 as a common format for desktop scanners, and it is still what most scanners, fax servers, copiers and records systems save by default; the extension is .tif or .tiff. Unlike a JPG it can hold many pages in one file and stores each page without loss, which is why a 40-page hospital chart or a court filing often sits on a server as a single .tif. The drawback is that phones, Chrome, Firefox and Edge cannot display a TIFF at all, and Windows Photos shows only the first page of a multi-page file. This tool decodes every page on your device and writes them into a PDF that opens anywhere.

What is DPI (dots per inch)?

DPI says how many pixels fit into one inch of the original paper, and it is the only way to recover the real size of a scanned page: a width of 2550 pixels is 8.5 inches at 300 DPI but 12.75 inches at 200 DPI. Scanners write the value into two TIFF tags, XResolution and YResolution. Fax machines use unequal values, usually 204 DPI across and 98 or 196 DPI down, so a fax page displayed as square pixels looks stretched. This tool reads both axes and builds the PDF page at the paper size they imply; when the tags are missing or implausible it fits the page to the paper you chose and reports that in the result line.

What is the difference between TIFF and PDF?

Both can hold a multi-page document, but a TIFF holds only pictures: every page is a grid of pixels, the text cannot be selected or searched, and you need a dedicated viewer to open it. A PDF is a page-layout format that can carry images, selectable text and fonts on the same page, opens in every browser and on every phone without extra software, and is what email attachments and official uploads are expected to be. This tool embeds the TIFF's pixels into PDF pages unchanged: a scan stays a scan, so the text does not become selectable (that takes OCR), but the file now opens everywhere and each page has the real paper size it was scanned at.

Why are black-and-white pages not turned into JPEG?

Most scanner and fax output is pure black and white: every pixel is either black or white with no shades between. Turning such a page into a JPEG does two kinds of damage: gray fringes appear around the edges of letters, and the file grows, because JPEG was designed for smooth photographs, not sharp black-on-white edges. This tool inspects every page; if it holds nothing but black and white pixels, the page is embedded lossless at 1 bit per pixel, which usually brings a 300 DPI Letter or A4 page down to 30–80 KB. Grayscale pages (pencil writing, faint stamps) are written lossless at 8 bits per pixel.

Color pages (photographs, color logos, colored ink stamps) are encoded as JPEG. The quality setting is high, but this is a lossy step and fine detail can change when you zoom in. The result line reports how many pages were handled as black and white, grayscale and color; if the split is not what you expected, your scanner probably saved a black-and-white document in color mode. If file size matters, rescan the document in "black and white" or "text" mode and the PDF will be a fraction of the size.

Where does the page size come from, and when should you set it yourself?

The default option reads the resolution tags inside the file and builds each page at its real paper size: a Letter sheet scanned at 200 DPI comes out as a Letter page, and a page scanned sideways stays landscape. Fax files carry different resolutions in the two directions (204 × 196 DPI, for example); because both values are read separately, the page comes out neither squashed nor stretched. If a value is missing or falls outside 50–2400 DPI, the file is not trusted and the page is fitted to Letter; the result line says "no DPI information, fitted to Letter paper" when that happens.

"Fit to A4" and "Fit to Letter" scale the page onto the paper you picked without changing its proportions and center it; a landscape image gets a landscape sheet. Use these options when the file was saved with a wrong DPI (a scan tagged 72 DPI would come out three feet wide) or when you will print the PDF on a specific paper size. Faxes and scans from the US and Canada are Letter; documents from Europe, the UK and most of the rest of the world are A4 (210 × 297 mm).

Frequently asked questions

Can I turn a multi-page TIFF into a single PDF?

Yes. Every page inside the TIFF becomes one page of the PDF, in the original order; a 30-page file converts to a 30-page PDF in one go. If you pick several TIFF files, each one downloads as its own PDF; to combine them into one document, feed the downloaded PDFs to the merge PDF page on this site. The page count in the result line should match what your scanner or fax software shows for the file.

My fax software saved a .tif that nothing will open. Will this tool read it?

Most likely. Fax files are saved with CCITT Group 3 or Group 4 compression, which phones and browsers cannot display; this tool decodes it. LZW, PackBits, Deflate and JPEG-inside-TIFF are supported too. If a page uses a rare compression type or is damaged, the tool names the page that could not be decoded instead of producing a half-finished PDF. Very large pages, above 60 million pixels, are refused because of browser memory limits; scan again at a lower DPI.

Why is the PDF smaller (or larger) than the TIFF?

Black-and-white pages are packed at 1 bit per pixel and compressed, so the PDF is usually much smaller than an uncompressed or LZW-compressed TIFF. Color pages are written as JPEG; if the TIFF already held JPEG data the sizes will be close, and if it held uncompressed color the PDF will be far smaller. The PDF grows in one case only: the scanner saved a black-and-white document in grayscale or color mode, so the tool writes it as lossless 8-bit gray, which can be larger than a JPEG. Rescanning in black-and-white mode shrinks both the TIFF and the PDF.

Is my file uploaded anywhere?

No. Your TIFF never leaves your device: decoding the pages, compressing them and writing the PDF all happen inside your browser, and no server is involved. That matters for medical records, property deeds and contract faxes. Once the page has loaded, the conversion works even with the internet disconnected.